Moore being matched with Chris Byrd and some saying he stops Byrd, made me ponder how hard Archie could hit at heavyweight? Thoughts please?
Not as devastating a puncher as he was at Light Heavy. But, that being said, he certainly punched harder than Byrd as a Heavyweight.
Very hard to say, Mac. I'm trying to think of a comparable puncher at heavyweight. What level do you see him as? James Toney, Jimmy Ellis, Max Schmeling type power, or below Schmeling? Interesting question, for sure.
Maybe Jimmy Ellis? I think Archie had the gift of knowing just where and when to hit,and of course, when he knew the time was right ,he was a superlative finisher.
Yes, he was a cerebral puncher! Very technical and physically strong, too. Did you ever read his autobiography? He said he could chin the bar hundreds of times none stop(the books buried in my loft, so I forget the exact number)! I don't know if this is an exaggeration but he had arm and back muscles that came from hard work, that's for sure. I think he's the type who could hurt any heavyweight with even a slightly iffy chin. As you say, he's so correct a puncher and I love watching him at work.
Chinning the bar was one of his methods of building strength in his arms,the other was shadow boxing with flat irons in each hand.Tough cookie old Archie! Ellis was a good first round banger with his right hand but he didn't have Moore's approach to stopping opponents. Someone, it might have been Joe Leibling, said he tested the opposition like a surgeon probing with a scalpel if he sensed too much resistance, he would back off until the optimum moment, then resume his probing ,to its inevitable conclusion. He wasn't a banger like Bob Foster he was more, as you say "cerebral".
